Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Financial Reporting Council: Internet

baroness bowles of berkhamsted: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the website of the Financial Reporting Council is managed and maintained in accordance with the National Archives’ guidance for digital and records management teams enabling it to be incorporated into the UK Government Web Archive; and whether they will place in the Library of the House all documents that have been changed or removed from the website since 9 January.

lord henley: The Office for National Statistics concluded in December 2014 that the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) was a public body within central government. Up to that point the FRC determined its own policies on records management. The British Library archives FRC material in the UK Web Archive in accordance with the Non-Print Legal Deposit Regulations 2013. The Department and the FRC will review in due course what arrangements should apply in the future given the FRC’s confirmed public body status.

Financial Reporting Council

baroness bowles of berkhamsted: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by Lord Henley on 3 May and 22 May (HL7149 and HL7589), what were the legal costs paid by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) to each law firm used in relation to enforcement action in the cases of HBOS, and Royal Bank of Scotland; what steps were taken to ensure there were no conflicts of interest in relation to the law firms used that had also acted for HBOS and Royal Bank of Scotland in related cases; and what was the involvement, if any, of Richard Fleck, former partner and now consultant to Herbert Smith in any of these cases whether in his FRC or Herbert Smith capacity.

lord henley: No law firms were instructed by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC)’s Enforcement Division in relation to HBOS or RBS. Richard Fleck had no involvement in relation to either investigation in his role as former partner or consultant to Herbert Smith LLP. As noted in the FRC report on the FRC’s enquiries and investigation of KPMG’s 2007 and 2008 audits of HBOS, Richard Fleck was the Chair of the FRC Conduct Committee from 01/04/2012 to 30/04/2014.

Financial Reporting Council

baroness bowles of berkhamsted: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Henley on 22 May (HL7589), what roles within the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) or its predecessor bodies has Kathryn Cearns, currently a member of the Financial Reporting Review Panel, has held; in what years she held each role; and what fees, other than any salary as an employee, she was paid in each year.

lord henley: From June 2006 Kathryn Cearns OBE has been a Member of the Financial Reporting Council’s Financial Reporting Review Panel; a position which is unpaid. Kathryn was on the Urgent Issues Task Force of the Accounting Standards Board from November 2006 to July 2012 and she was on the UK GAAP Technical Advisory Group from April to December 2013; no fees were paid in relation to these positions.

Financial Reporting Council

baroness bowles of berkhamsted: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Henley on 22 May (HL7589), why the selection of firms for enforcement cases was not the subject of a public tender.

lord henley: The Office for National Statistics concluded in December 2014 that the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) was a public body within central government. Up to that point the FRC determined its own policies on tender processes. Since being confirmed as a public sector body the FRC has been working with the Department to review all internal processes and practices in order to ensure that they comply with managing public money guidance. Sir John Kingman’s review of the FRC will also consider the transparency and appropriateness of FRC’s procedures in all aspects of its activities.

Financial Reporting Council

baroness bowles of berkhamsted: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byLord Henley on 1 June (HL7968), what was the composition of the steering group of the Financial Reporting Lab at the time the Financial Reporting Council publishedDisclosure of Dividends Policy and Practice; what proportion represented (1) investors, and (2) other civil society groups; and how many were or had been employees of KPMG.

lord henley: The Financial Reporting Council (FRC)’s Financial Reporting Lab Steering Group provides advice to the Lab staff but is not a decision-making body, nor does it approve the publication of any Lab reports. The Steering Group’s composition includes representatives of the main participants in the corporate reporting process: - Companies- Investors- Design agencies- Corporate brokers- Audit firms- Accountancy professional bodies- Academics- Legal representative- the FRC- Government The Financial Reporting Lab published three reports into Disclosure of Dividends Policy and Practice; the first of which was published in November 2015. At the time of this report there were 18 Steering Group members, of which two represented investors. There were no representatives from civil society groups and there were no partners or staff currently employed by KPMG. Three Steering group members were previously employed by KPMG. One member of staff who led the original project was also previously employed by KPMG. She worked for KPMG UK from 1996 to 2000 and KPMG Australia from 2000 to 2003. Following continued investor interest in dividend reporting, the Lab carried out two implementation studies, the first published in December 2016 and the second in October 2017. The studies considered the extent to which companies had put into place the recommendations included in the original report. There remained no partners or staff currently employed by KPMG on the Steering Group at the time of publication of either of these reports.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Darfur: Internally Displaced Persons

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports of a recent attack by a pro-government militia on an internally displaced persons camp in Central Darfur, Sudan.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We are concerned by reports that the Rapid Support Forces of the Sudanese Armed Forces used violence in the Khamsa Dagig Internally Displaced People Camp in Zalingei on the morning of 21 May, which led to civilian casualties including a fatality. We are monitoring the situation closely. We condemn the reported violence and urge the Government of Sudan both to investigate the incident and to ensure that its armed forces provide safety for civilians in a manner that is compliant with international humanitarian and human rights law.We regularly raise the importance of solutions for internally displaced persons camps with the Government of Sudan, including through the high-level UK-Sudan Strategic Dialogue, the fifth round of which was held on 24 April.

Transplant Surgery: China

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will consider making it illegal for British citizens to travel to China to receive organ transplants until it is proven beyond doubt that the alleged practice of forced organ removal from prisoners of conscience in China has ended.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: While UK physicians advise patients against it, it is very difficult to prevent UK citizens travelling to less well-regulated countries to seek an organ transplant. Although numbers in the UK are not collated, it is thought that very few patients in the UK choose to do so.We welcomed China's move to stop using organs harvested from executed prisoners from January 2015. We continue to monitor the degree of implementation of this commitment, and encourage China to make further progress in bringing transparency to their organ transplant process.

Philippines: Human Rights

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what replies they received when the Minister of State for Asia and the Pacific raised the issue of extra-judicial killings with the relevant Minister in the Philippines in December 2017 and with their Ambassador in April 2018.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Philippines Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs and the Philippines Ambassador took note of UK concerns over the high death toll associated with the “war on illegal drugs” and offered assurances that the campaign was being conducted in compliance with international conventions.​

Department of Health and Social Care

Mental Health Services

lord macpherson of earl's court: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to protect people experiencing mental health problems from accessing treatment from unqualified counsellors and psychotherapists,including by requiring statutory registration.

lord o'shaughnessy: The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health, published in February 2016, includes the recommendation that:“The Department of Health should consider how to introduce the regulation of psychological therapy services, which are not currently inspected unless they are provided within secondary mental health services.”The Department is currently working with the Care Quality Commission to examine the options and possibilities for taking this recommendation forward. The Department is committed to proportionate regulation of healthcare professionals.We are considering options for deciding the right level of regulatory oversight for professional groups following on from our Promoting Professionalism, Reforming Regulation public consultation, which closed on 23 January 2018. We expect to publish a full response to this consultation in due course.

Folic Acid

lord rooker: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the reply byBaroness Chisholm of Owlpen on 1 March (HL deb, col 789), what was the outcome of the review by the Committee on Toxicity of maximum intakes of folic acid.

lord o'shaughnessy: At its April 2018 meeting, the Committee on the Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer products and the Environment (COT) considered a scoping paper on the current Tolerable Upper Level (TUL) of intake recommended for folic acid and the implications of the recently published paper Public health failure in the prevention of neural tube defects: time to abandon the tolerable upper intake level of folate by Wald et al. A copy is attached.As the scientific database on the effects of folic acid is extensive and the science in several areas has developed significantly since the TUL was last considered in the early 2000s, the COT agreed that the basis of the current TUL for folic acid should be examined. The first detailed discussion paper will be considered at the next COT meeting in July 2018.



HL8311_COT_paper
(PDF Document, 637.35 KB)

General Practitioners

lord dobbs: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many doctors there were in general practice in each year between 2007 and 2017.

lord o'shaughnessy: The information requested for 2010-17 is shown in the following table. Due to changes in the methodology, comparable data is not available prior to 2010. Headcount general practitioners (GP) numbers (excluding locums) are provided as they are comparable 2010-17.  All practitioners (excluding locums) headcount201039,409201140,008201240,463201340,236201441,105201540,648201640,490201739,843 Source: NHS Digital All data as of 30 September for England.All data includes estimates for practices that did not provide fully valid GP data.Figures shown do not include GPs working in prisons, army bases, educational establishments, specialist care centres including drug rehabilitation centres and walk-in centres.

Ministry of Defence

Military Decorations

lord west of spithead: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byEarl Howe on 4 June (HL8094), whether long service and good conduct medals were (1) produced and issued to honorary 5 star officers, and (2)produced and not issued to retired Heads of Service.

earl howe: I refer the noble Lord to the answer I gave on 28 February 2018 to Question HL5695.https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Lords/2018-02-20/HL5695/



Military Decorations
(Word Document, 26.05 KB)

Department for Work and Pensions

Social Security Benefits: Medical Examinations

lord beecham: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many benefit assessment centres arefully accessible for disabled people.

baroness buscombe: Ensuring our assessment services are accessible to all claimants is a priority in line with the standards under the Equality Act 2010. Where customers are not able to access an assessment at one of our assessment centres, our assessment providers provide an alternative method of delivering the service. For example they may arrange an appointment at an alternative nearby assessment centre or arrange a home visit.

Poverty

lord bird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans, if any, they have to adopt an all-of-government approach to preventing the root causes of poverty.

baroness buscombe: This Government believes that works provides people with the best opportunity for getting out of poverty and into self-reliance. This is why it is committed to collective action that tackles the root causes of poverty and disadvantage through a range of policies that encourage people to move into and progress in work including Universal Credit, the National Living Wage, tax changes, and up to 30 hours of free childcare a week. There are around 880,000 fewer adults and almost 600,000 fewer children in workless households compared with 2010. ‘Improving Lives: Helping Workless Families’, published on 4 April, set out a framework for improving outcomes for children in workless households including nine cross-departmental indicators to track progress across a number of departments in tackling the disadvantages that can affect families and their children. The Department for Work and Pensions continues to work with a range of external stakeholders and with other Departments to take forward the policies set out in the paper and is also committed to pushing annual updates against all nine indicators.The Department is also represented at a ministerial level at a number of groups and forums which focus on supporting those who are most disadvantaged, whether or not they have children, including Inter Ministerial Groups on Rough Sleeping and Homelessness Reduction Taskforce, Serious Violence Strategy, Violence against Women and Girls, Race Disparity, Safe and Integrated Communities, the Reducing Reoffending Board and the Drugs Strategy Board. It also co-chairs the Financial Inclusion Policy Forum with the Economic Secretary to the Treasury.

Universal Credit: Domestic Violence

lord kirkwood of kirkhope: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plansthey haveto provide standalone training modules for Jobcentre Plus staff to enable them to deal with applications for Universal Credit from victims of physical or mental domestic abuse.

baroness buscombe: In supporting victims of domestic violence, the Jobcentre offers a range of support open to survivors and those still experiencing domestic abuse. Work Coaches delivering Universal Credit undergo a comprehensive learning journey designed to equip them with the tools, skills and behaviours required to provide a high quality service to all claimants. Specific training and guidance is provided for working with different vulnerable groups, including people who have been the victims of domestic violence. Work Coaches will signpost claimants to national and local organisations who can provide specialist support and apply the domestic violence easement, switching off all work-related requirements for a period of time. A national call was held recently to raise awareness and understanding of domestic abuse across the Jobcentre network and a video has been produced to highlight good practice when supporting individuals who have been or are currently in a domestic abuse relationship.

Universal Credit: Domestic Violence

lord kirkwood of kirkhope: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Universal Credit applicants in full service areas have been allowed conditionality easements to date as a result of reported domestic abuse.

baroness buscombe: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost. When a claimant reports domestic abuse to the Jobcentre Plus we will review their conditionality requirements, and provide easements where appropriate.

Universal Credit: Domestic Violence

lord kirkwood of kirkhope: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Universal Credit applicants in full service areas have been allowed split payments of benefit to date as a result of reported domestic abuse.

baroness buscombe: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost. DWP will support a claimant to put in place a split payment where they have requested it as a result of domestic violence.

Universal Credit: Domestic Violence

lord kirkwood of kirkhope: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Jobcentre Plus offices in Universal Credit full service areas have dedicated facilities for use as private interview suites when interviewing applicants who report domestic abuse.

baroness buscombe: The vast majority of Jobcentres delivering Universal Credit full service have private interview facilities as standard. In the small number of offices where they are not available we are able to make arrangements for customers at nearby offices which do have rooms, or arrange for a home visit to be made where it is appropriate to do so. We always endeavour to deal with vulnerable claimants sensitively, taking into account the particular circumstances and individual needs of the customers.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Food: Quality Control

baroness jones of whitchurch: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps are being taken to enhance the role of food certification and assurance schemes after Brexit.

lord gardiner of kimble: Our farmers work to some of the highest food and environmental welfare standards in the world. Food assurance schemes can assure animal welfare, food safety, traceability and environmental protection. Once we leave the EU, we have an opportunity to make greater use of accreditation schemes as part of our future agriculture policy and we are giving consideration to how such approaches can be used to further maintain and recognise high standards.

Department for Exiting the European Union

Regulation

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many new regulatory bodies will need to be established in preparation for Brexit.

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made towards establishing any new regulatory bodies needed post-Brexit; and whether such bodies will be establishedby the timethe UK withdraws from the EU.

lord callanan: We are seeking a deep and special partnership with the European Union. Our relationship with the European Union's agencies and bodies upon exit will be evaluated on this basis.The Government will always look to minimise disruption and costs, which will include considering alternative options. In most cases we anticipate that repatriated EU functions can be absorbed by departments and existing public bodies.We will continue to plan for a range of scenarios and be ready to take any necessary steps to ensure that we are ready for exit day.

Customs

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress has been made in regards to a future customs agreement with the EU.

lord callanan: The Government is seeking a customs arrangement which fulfills three key objectives:to keep trade with the EU as frictionless as possible;to avoid a ‘hard border’ with Northern Ireland; andto establish an independent UK trade policy. In the Future Partnership Paper, the Government set out two approaches for our future customs arrangements with the EU - a Highly Streamlined Customs Arrangement, and a New Customs Partnership. Both of these would fulfil our objectives, but we recognise there are unresolved issues with both, which is why there are two ministerial groups looking at each model. The final customs arrangements that we have with the EU will be subject to the outcome of negotiations.

UK Trade with EU

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government when the white paper on the UK’s future trade relationship with the EU will be published.

lord callanan: The White Paper on the UK’s future relationship with the European Union will be published shortly.Our current focus is the June European Council, where the Prime Minister will be talking about finalising the Withdrawal Agreement, but also pressing on the future relationship. After that, Cabinet ministers will be gathering at Chequers for an away day to finalise the White Paper.